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Author Topic: Paul vs. Legalism
WildB
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quote:
Originally posted by becauseHElives:
How sad you all choose to side with the false teachings of the Bearen Bible Society over the teaching of Yahshua...they teach Paul taught a different Gospel...I do truly pray for your deception...

1 Timothy 6: 3If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;

4He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings,

5Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

I pray for you all...Father forgive them they know not what they do.....

I pray for you and Berry.

Father forgive them,

because they do know what they are doing.

I do this in Jesus name,

Amen

Romans 2:1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.
Romans 2:3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?


It is clear to all what the Bereans teach and what
you and Berry teach.

The legal gospel.

1That OSAS, is a license to SIN~~~!"
2That the Sabbath is to be kept on Saturday.
3That Yahushua must be used in the place of the name JESUS.
4That the Harpazo is a lie.
5That there is no BEMA.
6That there is no such thing as a carnal Christian.
7That THE MYSTERY is a lie.
8That retention of the Law will be the guarantee of everlasting life.

What does the Berean Bible Society believe?
An excellent question! Here is a copy of their doctrinal statement:

WE BELIEVE:
1) The verbal inspiration and plenary authority of the BIBLE in its original writings.

2) The eternal trinity of the GODHEAD.

3) The eternal deity, virgin birth, vicarious death, and spotless humanity of the LORD JESUS CHRIST.

4) MANKIND by nature is sinful and under the condemnation of God.

5) Personal SALVATION is by God’s grace, through faith in the crucified, risen, and glorified Christ.

6) The ETERNAL SECURITY of all the saved.

7) The personality and deity of the HOLY SPIRIT.

8) The essential unity of all believers of the present dispensation as members of the one true Church, the BODY OF CHRIST.

9) The GIFTS enumerated in Ephesians 4:7-16, have been given for the building up of the Body of Christ, and of these, only evangelists, pastors, and teachers are in order during the present dispensation. The sign gifts of the Acts period were temporary in character, and have ceased.

10) The privilege and duty of all the saved to WALK by faith as children of light.

11) The Communion of the LORD’S SUPPER as revealed through Paul for the members of the Body of Christ “TILL HE COME.”

12) All believers are made members of the Body of Christ by One Divine BAPTISM, by which also they are identified with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. In the light of I Corinthians 1:17, Ephesians 4:5. and Colossians 2:12, we affirm that water baptism has no place in God’s spiritual program for the Body of Christ in this dispensation of grace.

13) The RESURRECTION of the Body.

14) The Pretribulation RAPTURE of the Church.

15) The personal, premillennial RETURN OF CHRIST to reign on earth.

16) The ETERNAL PUNISHMENT of the unsaved dead.

17) The MYSTERY “Hid in God” was the divine purpose to make of Jew and Gentile a whole new thing, that is, the Church, which is Christ’s Body. The revelation of this Mystery was committed to Paul, and it is in his writings alone that we find the doctrine, position, walk and destiny of the Church.


3. What is a "berean" anyway?
Thanks for asking. We get asked that a lot. Being called a Berean comes from Acts 17:10-11. In verse 11 it says that those from Berea (hence, the Bereans) were nobler than the people in Thessalonica because they "received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so."

So, when we say that someone is a "Berean" we mean that they do two things: (1) They have an open mind and willingly receive the Word of God when it is taught to them and (2) But then, they check out what they were taught by comparing it with the Scriptures.

Both aspects are important. Some people are so closed minded that they will not even listen to anything new or that might threaten what they already know. Others are so gullible that they accept whatever is told them without ever checking it against what the Bible says. Both extremes are to be avoided.

A Berean is one who has a balanced viewpoint. We listen to what someone has to say because we are eager to learn the word of God more perfectly. We realize that we have not learned it all. But then, we take what we have heard and compare it with the Bible. Then, if both match, we have learned something and increased our knowledge of God's Word, rightly divided.

The full attack can be read from this post.

http://thechristianbbs.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=53;t=000516#000000

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That is all.....

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Caretaker
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quote:
Originally posted by becauseHElives:
How sad you all choose to side with the false teachings of the Bearen Bible Society over the teaching of Yahshua...they teach Paul taught a different Gospel...I do truly pray for your deception...

1 Timothy 6: 3If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;

4He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings,

5Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

I pray for you all...Father forgive them they know not what they do.....

Galations 5:

5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

5:2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.

5:3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.

5:4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.


Gal. 3:

3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.

3:12 And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.

3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:


Phillipians 3:

3:2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

3:3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

3:4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:

3:5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;

3:6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

3:7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.

3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

3:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;


In the third chapter of Phillipians Paul calls the Judaisers/Legalists "Dogs", who were seeking to bring the keeping of the obsolete Law of Moses given ONLY to the Children of Israel, and fulfilled in Christ on Calvary and nailed forever to the Cross.

Galations 3:


3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

WE ARE NO LONGER UNDER A SCHOOLMASTER!!!!!

quote:

In the Old Testament, the Law was an elementary education; it was like the spiritual ABC’s of life. God’s purpose for the law was to lead people to the coming messiah. However, Jesus said that he is “the Alpha and the Omega”, which means that Jesus is our spiritual A to Z. In Christ we have the full revelation of God, and complete redemption and restoration. The basic principles of the world are not only incomplete, but they are also enslaving. As adopted sons of God, the Galatians had learned to call God “Abba Father”. However, the Judaizers told the Galatians that they needed to go back to the law and practice over 600 Jewish ceremonial rituals in order to be accepted by God. The Judaizers not only hindered Paul’s ministry, but they threatened to lead the Galatians back into spiritual slavery. We can see why the Apostle Paul was so alarmed. Why would a beloved child go back to a life of slavery? Paul did everything he could to help them come back to their senses. In chapter 1, he reminded them of their own conversion by the gospel of Christ. In chapter 3, he appealed to their experience of the Holy Spirit. In chapter 4, he argued with them on the basis of history, theology, and daily life examples. Now, Paul pleads with them on the basis of their personal relationship, like a parent agonizing over his wayward child. Paul had thought that the Galatians were born again through the gospel into God’s family. But now he worries whether their faith was stillborn. He reached his wit’s end, unsure how to help them. Paul, who had been strong in his theological defense now reveals his broken heart as a pastor. How could anyone who had received the grace of redemption and adoption by God want to go back to an orphanage? The Galatians had been given the full blessings of God through the gospel, but now they wanted to go back to spiritual slavery. In verse 9, Paul pointed out that it is not what we know, but it is who knows us that makes us sons of God. He said, “But now that you know God – or rather are known by God”. Our confidence does not come from anything that we have done or even from correct theological knowledge. We become confident in our faith when we discover that God knows us, that he has written our names in heaven, and he has revealed himself to us through the gospel of grace. The slavery of legalism always tempts Christians to trust their rituals rather than trust the love of Christ. However, if we have truly become God’s children, our relationship with God will not fail. The more we know God, the more we become confident in his love and forgiveness.

http://westloop-church.org/messages/new-testament/27-galatians/115-until-christ-is-formed-in-you-galatians-48-20



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A Servant of Christ,
Drew

1 Tim. 3:
16: And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh..

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becauseHElives
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How sad you all choose to side with the false teachings of the Bearen Bible Society over the teaching of Yahshua...they teach Paul taught a different Gospel...I do truly pray for your deception...

1 Timothy 6: 3If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;

4He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings,

5Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

I pray for you all...Father forgive them they know not what they do.....

--------------------
Strive to enter in at the strait gate:for many, I say unto you will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. ( Luke 13:24 )

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Carol Swenson
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quote:
Originally posted by becauseHElives:
it's not about keeping the Law , it about loving the things Yahweh loves....if you are Born Again and the Spirit of Yahweh now abides in you... even if you are carnal, it is the Law that is on your heart that the Holy Spirit uses to bring conviction....and if you are carnal and in sin and are not convicted of being carnal ...you are not Yahweh's child.... you are a bastard.

This is true. The Lord will discipline those He loves.
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becauseHElives
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it's not about keeping the Law , it about loving the things Yahweh loves....if you are Born Again and the Spirit of Yahweh now abides in you... even if you are carnal, it is the Law that is on your heart that the Holy Spirit uses to bring conviction....and if you are carnal and in sin and are not convicted of being carnal ...you are not Yahweh's child.... you are a bastard.

--------------------
Strive to enter in at the strait gate:for many, I say unto you will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. ( Luke 13:24 )

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becauseHElives
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quote:
8That retention of the Law will be the guarantee of everlasting life.
if your going to quote me quote me rightly in context....

That retention of the Law written on the heart will be the guarantee of everlasting life. (i said it and i stand by what i said)

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
Psalm 19:7

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Strive to enter in at the strait gate:for many, I say unto you will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. ( Luke 13:24 )

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WildB
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Well said. I could only think to add slightly. Hope you don't mind.


Romans 8:2, when correctly read, is a most blessed passage of Scripture. To get the sense we should place a dash between the words "Spirit" and "of." Thus it would read: "For the law of the Spirit -- of life in Christ Jesus, hath made me free from the law of sin and death."
When a sinner places his trust in Christ as Savior he is justified before the bar of God, because Christ's death and righteousness are imputed to him. This is a judicial matter.

But at the same moment something else happens: the Spirit regenerates and gives new life (Tit. 3:5). This is a law, an inexorable, unchangeable law. The sinner who sincerely places his trust in Christ as Savior is given life by the Holy Spirit. It is always so; it is never otherwise.

I John 5:12 says: "He that hath the Son hath life...." John 3:36 says that "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life" and Col. 3:3 declares that the believer's life is "hid with Christ in God."

Thus the Apostle could say: "The law of the Spirit, [that of] life in Christ, hath made me free from the law of sin and death." Adam forfeited his life by sin, but the believer's new life can never be forfeited, for this life is nothing less than the life of Christ, in whom the sinner has already died and paid for his sins -- and in whom he now stands perfect and complete before God.

It is a law, a fixed unchangeable law, that sin brings forth death (Rom. 5:12; 6:23; et al). This is called "the law of sin and death," but the believer has already died for sin in Christ and has been given new life by the Spirit. Thus "the law of the Spirit," that of "life in Christ," has made the simplest believer "free from the law of sin and death."

Thank God for "the law of the Spirit," everlasting life through the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for our sins.

http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/twominutes/twominut.php?d=2010-11-23

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That is all.....

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Aaron
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The reason we struggle here is because we always come to this topic by way of the lawful gate. And so we argue from the point of how much or how little is required from us. We’re still trying to “do things for God” in order to please Him and thus validate our position. In this argument there is only lawfulness and lawlessness. But I submit there is another option: the way of the Spirit.

For us to see it we must deal with the question “In the ministry of reconciliation (“For God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting men’s sins against them.”) to what are we reconciled? Which is to ask, “What was the original purpose for man?” It’s certainly not to save him in order to get him to heaven. If that’s your goal then don’t make man and save yourself some trouble. There is something about man made in the image of God that accompanies the reality of reconciliation. Man was made to be God’s image in the earth. We know that man was made in His image and we know that man was made to be placed in the earth because that’s where God placed him.

So, the issue of the tree was not a “test” to see if man would pass or fail. It does not signify an unfinished man having yet to go through trials and tests to discover his real character. He was made in God’s image. He was made as a son of God (Luke 3) and he was placed in the earth to be like his Father. And one of the characteristics of God is submission.

In the God-head there is submission. The Spirit submits to the Son, the Son submits to the Father…submission. And there is great humility as we see our Father deposit a portion of Himself into dirt to make it the man Adam. Submission is seen in creation: we know that by Him (Christ) all things were made and yet we see the “Spirit of God hovering over the face of the deep” as God’s commands to His Son are carried out in the earth through the Holy Spirit. We see this same submission again before Jesus’ death when He said that upon His exit the Holy Spirit would come and “He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak”. So the Spirit submits to the Son and speaks only what He hears.

The tree was about submission; a characteristic of God the Father. So, God raises His son, Adam, to be like Him and within that relationship He teaches him something about submission to authority: don’t eat of that tree. “Submit like I submit, my son. For you were made in my image and likeness.” The way of the Spirit is sonship not legalism or lawlessness. Those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

Aaron

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TB125
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In the consideration of this matter, it might help to recognize that "law" and "faith" were always basic factors in God's relationship with his created humans. They were not just introduced with Abraham and Moses. Note the presence of "law" in the initial commandment of God to Adam, "you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:17) This commandment set up a test for Adam and Eve to determine who they were going to trust in their lives, God or themselves. This is a test of "faith". It is the same type of command and test that God gave to Noah when he made a covenant with him. (See Gen. 6-9) It is the same type of test that God later gave to Abram when he told him to "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you." (Genesis 12:1) Abram obeyed and went, and then God made a covenant with him. Part of that covenant was numerous "offspring". But they would come from his union with Sarah, not his union with Hagar, Sarah's handmaid. Abraham wasn't too convinced of the possibility of this happening since he was 100 years old and Sarah was 90, and they hadn't been able to have any children. (see Gen 17:17 and the other verses in that chapter for the details of this covenant) Later God gave Abraham another test of his "faith" when he commanded him to take Isaac, the child that he had promised to give Abraham and Sarah, and to sacrifice him on a mountain in Moriah. (see Gen 22 for an account of this test, which Abraham passed) So we shouldn't get confused regarding the sequence of law and faith in our relationship with God. They have always been together. (see John 15:7-14, 16:23-27 for Jesus' covenant with his disciples and subsequent followers who would believe or trust him)I hope that this helps to clarify this matter.

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Bob

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WildB
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By Cornelius R. Stam

THE COVENANT OF THE LAW


The covenant of the law was made between God and Israel, with Moses as mediator and angels to witness and confirm the transaction (See John 1:17; Acts 7:53; Gal. 3:19).

It was made 430 years after the Abrahamic covenant, in which God had promised repeatedly and unconditionally that Abraham's multiplied seed should be His people and should become the blessers of the world.

This poses a problem, for here, more than four centuries after making these unconditional promises to Abraham and confirming them to Isaac and to Jacob, God begins to add qualifications, saying:

"Now therefore, IF ye 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" (Exod. 19:5).

Paul faces this problem candidly when he states in Galatians 3:15:

"Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man's covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disanulleth, or addeth thereto."

Or to state it in modern English: Even a man, after having signed an agreement would not think of taking from it or adding to it. Once the agreement is confirmed by his signature it must be carried out as agreed.

And then, presenting the problem, the apostle adds:

"Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added..." (Gal. 3:19).

Would God, then, add qualifying clauses to a covenant already made and confirmed? Yes—indeed, He added a whole new covenant! And to increase the difficulty, Israel confirmed the added covenant, answering in unison:

"...All that the Lord hath spoken we will do..." (Exod. 19:8).

Thus what Abraham's seed had once been promised unconditionally now seemed to depend upon a very big "IF"—probably the Bible's biggest "IF," for who could obey God's voice indeed and fully keep His law?

THE PURPOSE OF THE COVENANT

Thank God, we are also given the solution to this perplexing problem. To begin with, the apostle assures his readers:

"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 is should make the promise of none effect" (Gal. 3:17).

What, then, is the solution?

First, the law was not given, as so many suppose, to help men to be good, but to show them that they are bad. And be it noted that while the covenant of the law was made with Israel, it nevertheless spells condemnation to all the race, for it outlines those standards of holiness to which none of Adam's children can attain and without which no man shall see God (Heb. 12:14).

"Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

"Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Rom. 3:19,20).

"...It was added because of transgressions..." (Gal. 3:19).

But did not this very fact make it impossible for God to fulfill the unconditional promises made under the Abrahamic covenant without violating the stipulations of this added covenant? Did not this added covenant specify that they should be His people IF they obeyed His voice indeed? Was it not now impossible for the most godly Jew to be saved? Had not God in fact nullified the whole Abrahamic covenant?

No, for the penalty for the broken law was to be met by God Himself in due time. God had made this added covenant simply to show man his moral and spiritual bankruptcy and that on the grounds of the added covenant he could never be saved. The unconditional promise made so long ago still stood and every believing Israelite was accepted of God.

THE COFFIN OF THE COVENANT

That God did not mean the Mosaic covenant to make the Abrahamic void is evident from several interesting facts found in the record of the Mosaic covenant itself.

After giving Israel claim to acceptance with Him only IF they obeyed His will, God proceeded to instruct Moses:

"Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering....And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them" (Exod. 25:2,8).

And this while He knew they were not obeying His voice and were preparing to dance as heathen about a golden calf!

This seeming indifference to His own solemn word is partially explained as He further instructs Moses:

"And they shall make an ark.... And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee" (Exod. 25:10,16).

The word here rendered "ark" is really "coffin." The very same word is used in Genesis 50:26, where we read of Joseph:

"And they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt."

Thus the very first article of furniture God commanded for the tabernacle was a coffin to bury the law in!

It is unfortunate that this word has been translated "ark" in the Authorized Version. Wherever we read of the "ark of the covenant" in the Bible we should remember it is the "coffin of the covenant." This will throw light on many, many passages which otherwise might be obscure.

Significantly God commanded that the cover for this coffin should be a "mercy seat" (Exod. 25:17).

"And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony which I shall give thee.

"And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat" (Exod. 25:21,22).

All this, of course, was symbolic of truths later to be revealed, but it indicates that God did not for one moment mean the Mosaic covenant to make the Abrahamic covenant void, since Christ was to meet the full demands of a broken law by His death.

THE COVENANT GROWING OLD

God would not have added the Mosaic covenant had it not been for the Lamb "foreordained before the foundation of the world" (I Pet. 1:19,20). Nevertheless, having Christ in mind, He did add it and Israel accepted and confirmed it so that, for the time being, it was binding upon them. And this served to demonstrate to them their utter depravity and inability to obey God.

By about 600 B.C. it had been more than fully proven that the covenant of the law could not bring Israel to God and He promised to make a New Covenant with them, putting His law in their inward parts and writing it upon their hearts. This was about the time Israel lost her national supremacy and "the times of the Gentiles" began. The law was growing old. Hebrews 8:13 says of this:

"In that he saith, A new covenant, He hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away."

THE COVENANT ABOLISHED

As it was the coming death of Christ that warranted putting the law into a coffin in the first place, so it was the death of Christ that finally abolished this covenant. But all this began to be manifested only after sin had risen to its height and God had saved the chief of sinners, sending him forth with the gospel of the grace of God.

For sometime after the Cross Messiah's followers still considered themselves under the law. No revelation had yet been given to indicate that they were not. Ananias, that faithful follower of Christ who baptized Saul of Tarsus, was "a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there" (Acts 22:12). It was only in Acts 15, at the great Jerusalem council, that the Jewish believers first agreed that Gentiles were not to be under the law. Whether or not the Jews were to be under the law was not even discussed. They assumed that they were still to continue under the law, for no revelation had been given to the contrary. However, with the fall and setting aside of the nation with whom the covenant had been made, and with the further revelation of Paul concerning both the law and the work of Christ, it became evident that the covenant and dispensation of the law had come to an end.

There are those who suppose the Pentecostal believers should have realized that the law had been nailed to the Cross, but it must be emphasized that not until Paul did God give any revelation to that effect. The "dispensation of the grace of God" was not committed to Peter but to Paul and until Paul it had been a mystery (See Eph. 3:1-3). Not until Paul do we read:

"BUT NOW the righteousness of God without the law is manifested...to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past...to declare, I say, AT THIS TIME His righteousness: that He might be just and the Justifier of him that believeth in Jesus" (Rom. 3:21-26).

Not until Paul do we read:

"For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under law, but under grace" (Rom. 6:14).

THE LAW AND THE BELIEVER

But while the covenant of the law was abolished, the law itself will, of course, remain forever. God has graciously removed the "IF" but this does not alter the fact that His people in every age should seek to obey His voice indeed. Also, the dispensation of the law—the ordinances, statutes and all that—has passed away, but the principle remains.

"For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

"That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit" (Rom. 8:3,4).

THE LAW AND THE NEW COVENANT

Those who suppose that at Pentecost the twelve should have known that the law was done away sometimes think this because the New Covenant was made at Calvary. But the making of a covenant is not the fulfillment of it. It is too often forgotten that God merely promised to make a new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31, and that the covenant was not made until Calvary. It will not be fulfilled until all Israel is saved and they all know the Lord, from the least of them to the greatest of them.

But here again it should be noticed that the New Covenant, while displacing the covenant of the law does not displace the law itself. Indeed, by it, God's people will spontaneously fulfil the law. This could not be stated more clearly than it is in Jeremiah 31:33:

"But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people."

MOSES, CHRIST AND THE LAW

As the Old Covenant was made with Israel alone, yet affects the whole world (Rom. 3:19), so the New Covenant, while made "with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah," affects the whole world too, for by "the blood of the New Covenant" the condemnation of the Old was removed.

Moses was the mediator of the Old Covenant (Gal. 3:19); Christ was the Mediator of the New (Heb. 9:15). Moses demanded righteousness, but he could neither give the ability to obey the law nor undo the effects of a broken law. But Christ as the Mediator of the New Covenant, paid the debt of a broken law, offers His own perfect righteousness and by His Spirit enables the believer to live pleasing to God.

THE PRESENT DISPENSATION

Because the present state of affairs does not seem to be a continuation of the fulfillment of the prophecies concerning Christ and the nation Israel some have altered the prophecies to make them fit. The Church of this age, they say, is the Israel referred to in the prophecies concerning the kingdom, and the throne of David is supposed to be the throne on which He now sits as "King of the Church," while the Canaan of prophecy is heaven itself.

All these alterations are made on the premise that these prophecies should be understood in a "spiritual" sense. But we protest that this failure to take God at His word is carnal, not spiritual and, furthermore, that this whole system of interpretation—(1) leaves us at the mercy of theologians who may tell us what the Scriptures mean, (2) affects the veracity of God and (3) endorses apostasy.

If our brethren who "spiritualize" these promises understood the Mystery they would find no need to alter Prophecy.

The fact is that the present dispensation was a mystery, hid from ages and from generations, until revealed to and through the Apostle Paul, and it is a mystery of which no believer should be ignorant.

"For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in" (Rom. 11:25).

"For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that He might have mercy upon all" (Rom. 11:32).

"And that He might reconcile both unto God in one Body by the Cross, having slain the enmity thereby" (Eph. 2:16).

The same Christ who was raised from the dead to sit on David's throne, according to Peter's Pentecostal address, was also raised up for another purpose, according to the later revelation given through Paul:

"Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.

"Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel" (II Tim. 2:7,8).

According to this gospel Christ was raised, not only to be King over Israel, but to be the Head of the Body (Eph. 1:18-23).

The kingdom, for the time being, is vested in the Person of Christ, seated at God's right hand far above all heavens.

When God presented His "beloved Son," they cried "Away with Him," so now believers are "translated into the kingdom of His dear [beloved] Son" (Col. 1:13). "Our conversation [citizenship] is in heaven" (Phil. 3:20) and we are sent forth as ambassadors of Christ to offer to His enemies reconciliation by grace through faith (II Cor. 5:14-21), until He calls us to be with Himself (I Thes. 4:16-18).

THE FINAL ESTABLISHMENT OF THE KINGDOM

According to Romans 11:25 Israel's blindness will not be removed until "the fullness of the Gentiles" shall have come in. Indeed, the removal of that blindness is associated with the return of Christ Himself, as the next verse indicates:

"And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob" (Rom. 11:26).

The kingdom, then, will not be brought in by the preaching of the gospel of the grace of God. It will be brought in by the return of Christ.

Little wonder that John, who writes particularly for a future generation, calls himself their "companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ" (Rev. 1:9), for it will be when the outlook seems most hopeless that our Lord's return to earth and the establishment of His kingdom will take place.

Nimrod's successor, "the beast," aided by Satan, will do all in his power to set up a world empire and will apparently make great progress in this direction, for in Revelation 17:12,13 we read:

"And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.

"These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast."

But "the beast" and his "ten kings" will go one step too far:

"These shall make war with the Lamb and the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful" (Rev. 17:14).

It is then that Daniel 2:44 will be fulfilled:

"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever."

Thus the solemn judgments with which God will visit the nations will bring in the beneficent and glorious reign of Christ.

"And the seventh angel sounded: and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ, and He shall reign for ever and ever.

"And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,

"Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee great power, and hast reigned" (Rev. 11:15-17).

BUYING UP THE TIME

The kingdom, then, will be ushered in by judgment, not by grace. Christ will descend from heaven to "judge and make war," treading "the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God" (Rev. 19:11,15). He will "rebuke strong nations" (Mic. 4:3); He will "speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure" (Psa. 2:5).

Much as we long that our despised Savior shall come into His glory here on earth and much as we long to see this poor world come into the joy and peace of His reign, we thank God that "the day of vengeance" has not yet come.

Though there are no specific signs to indicate the close of the day of grace and of our Lord's coming to catch us, His ambassadors, out of this sinful scene, we feel the day must be very near that these judgments will take place. We, even more than those of Paul's day, should take to heart his exhortation:

"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

"Redeeming [buying up] the time, because the days are evil" (Eph. 5:15,16).

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That is all.....

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John Hale
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So Paul was not throwing out LAW but the old law the law of Moses with respect to the law of Christ which trumps all.

He was not advocating lawlessnes or debauchery as some seem to believe. Far from.

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John Hale
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Galatians 3:24-25 (KJV)
24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

This does not mean we are without law. Just a new law or one that supersedes the former law. Like the law of aerodynamics superseded the law of gravity. Both are still in effect.

1 Corinthians 9:19-21 (NIV)
19 Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.
20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.
21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law.

Notice it's God's law Christ's law...

Jeremiah 31:31-34 (NIV)
31 “The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD.
33 “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
34 No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the LORD. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”

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John Hale
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We must take great care not to throw out the Baby with the bathwater on the matter of legalism. In the name of grace versus legalism, most Hebrew ordinances were expunged in the name of legalism, and in their place pagan rites and rituals were ordained.

What God ordained was thrown out and what man ordained replaced them.

There are some things I would argue that were fulfilled or its fuller meaning was made manifest... shomer shabbos (keeping sabbath) is applied to the era of grace we live in. In that sense every day is sabbath... and we who are a kingdom priests do our priestly duties on sabbath.

John 5:18 (KJV)
18 Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

Matthew 12:5 (KJV)
5 Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless?

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WildB
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It is clear to all what is required by the legal/grace gospel.

Becausehelives states "When men are restored to perfection, the law of God will be written in their hearts (Jer. 31:33), and its spirit of love will permeate their whole being, and its retention will be their guarantee of everlasting life."


1That OSAS,is a license to SIN~~~!"
2That the Sabbath is to be kept on Saturday.
3That Yahushua must be used in the place of the name JESUS.
4That the Harpazo is a lie.
5That there is no BEMA.
6That there is no such thing as a carnal Christian.
7That THE MYSTERY is a lie.
8That retention of the Law will be the guarantee of everlasting life.

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That is all.....

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Caretaker
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Paul had led the Galatians to Christ (3:1). They had made a good start in the Christian life (3:3) and were doing well spiritually (5:7). Later some Jewish teachers (called Judaizers) taught the Galations that to be saved one must not only believe in Christ, but must also obey the Mosaic Law, the sign of which is circumcision. In preaching this heresy, they also attacked Paul’s apostleship and gospel. Their false gospel had a detrimental effect on the Galations: it was beginning to hinder their obedience to God (5:7), they were starting to observe some parts of the Law (4:10), and they were considering a complete acceptance of the Law (1:6, 4:9).

Paul seeks to expose the error of the Judaizers’ gospel and their impure motives (6:12,13). His ultimate goal is to prevent the readers from embracing a false gospel and to encourage them to retain their spiritual freedom in Christ (5:1). The apostle does not want his dear converts to be tied up with all the now abolished rules and regulations of the Mosaic Law, which will lead them into legalism.

Gal. 3:

1
O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
2
This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
3
Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

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A Servant of Christ,
Drew

1 Tim. 3:
16: And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh..

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