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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Legalism, not by
works, so that no one can boast,
ephesians 2.9.
We are not saved by works, isusually the knee-jerk reaction
to any suggestion today that weshould actually obey Scripture.
We need, however, to stopacting like brute beasts who
believe by instinct rather thanby enlightened faith.
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We must understand one thingvery clearly A person does not
become legalistic by obeyingScripture.
If that were the case, then allthe apostles would have fallen
from grace.
Indeed, remember that Paulpreached obedience, obedience
that comes from faith, butobedience nonetheless.
The bottom line is that if aman has true faith in Jesus, his
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life conforming to Scripturetestifies of that faith.
As a preacher, I am to preachobedience, to call for an
obedience that comes from faith.
Through him and for his name'ssake, we received grace and
apostleship to call people fromamong all the Gentiles to the
obedience that comes from faithRomans 1.5.
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Three kinds of obedience takeplace in the church today.
Only one, however, is trueobedience that comes from honest
belief in Jesus, spirit-filledand charismatic obedience, the
claiming of the Holy Spiritwithout obedience, where
emotions and the flesh feelelevated to the position of God.
It is an emotional, fleshlyapplication of Scripture, with
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each person doing whatever feelscomfortable to them.
Legalistic and logicalobedience.
Scripture is obeyed selectively, but without surrender to the
Holy Spirit and the cross.
This is true legalism.
The obedience of truediscipleship.
Surrender to the Holy Spiritthat allows grace to work.
Obedience to Scripture this isthe new life that Jesus came to
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bring.
Let us look at these points ingreater detail.
True Rebellion, first of all.
Some believers claim to have theHoly Spirit, but they do not
obey the Scripture.
Such is the case for the vastmajority of Spirit-filled or
charismatic Christians.
Those on the outside can easilysee that such people claim to
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follow the Word of God butmerely please themselves in the
name of Jesus.
They are the golden calfworshippers of today that will
not wait for the commands of Godto flow down from the holy
mountain.
They desire only to haveliberty, fun and freedom in the
name of Jesus.
The same thing happened inExodus 32, when the Israelites
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made themselves a golden calfand danced around it with great
joy and zeal, all in the name ofthe Lord.
When Aaron saw this, he builtan altar in front of the calf
and announced Tomorrow therewill be a festival to the Lord.
When Aaron saw this, he builtan altar in front of the calf
and announced Tomorrow therewill be a festival to the Lord,
exodus 32.5.
Many people say they are filledwith the Holy Spirit, yet refuse
to obey God.
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They will often use the tiredold excuse that they do not want
to be legalistic or fall intosalvation by works.
But simply obeying God'scommands does not constitute
trying to earn salvation.
Nor does doing work in Christmean that a man nullifies the
free gift of God.
Indeed, god creates us to dogood works that he prepared in
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advance for us to do, for we areGod's workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus to do good workswhich God prepared in advance
for us to do Ephesians 2.10.
If we refuse to allow God towork in us, we cut ourselves off
from saving grace.
A man cannot just do as hepleases, refusing to be moved by
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God's saving working grace, andthen expect to go to heaven.
That would be like theIsraelites standing beside the
parted Red Sea and then whiningto God.
This is salvation by works.
Why are you asking us to dosomething?
Why do we have to walk a cross?
Why do we have to be baptizedin Moses?
Why do we have to pass throughthis water?
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If they had stood there withthat attitude, pharaoh's army
would have destroyed them.
Sin and worldliness would haveovertaken them.
As Jesus would say.
Let the reader understand afaith in God unaccompanied by
obedience is not a saving faith,but a demonic one that takes
selfish liberty in the name ofGod's mercy.
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True friends of God demonstratethat they receive a true faith,
and their actions prove it.
For this reason, water baptismcan save a person without it
being a work to earn salvation,for if the Holy Spirit works
true faith in a person, therewill also be, at the same time,
obedience to what God commands.
The man or woman who takes theprompting of the Holy Spirit and
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responds in a manner that Goddoes not command is a rebel and
liar.
Such a faith cannot save them.
If Abraham had tried to offerup a cow instead of his son, he
would not have been called afriend of God.
If a person refuses to obeyGod's command to be baptized,
but instead tries to earn hissalvation with a canned prayer,
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he shouldn't expect to enterheaven.
Was not our ancestor Abrahamconsidered righteous for what he
did when he offered his sonIsaac on the altar.
You see that his faith and hisactions were working together,
and his faith was made completeby what he did and the scripture
was fulfilled.
That says Abraham believed Godand it was credited to him as
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righteousness and he was calledGod's friend.
James 2, 21-23.
True Legalism.
James 2, 21-23.
True Legalism.
Secondly, we find the group madeup of legalists and logical
thinkers.
They form most of what weconsider the mainstream
Protestant churches, such asBaptist, church of Christ,
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methodist, etc.
Though many now embrace thefoolishness of the
charismatic-type churches, themajority remain very
conservative and, in theirapproach to Scripture, are
greatly concerned with thingslike the historical context and
the Greek or Hebrew.
Like the first group, theyclaim something that they do not
really have.
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They claim a belief in the HolySpirit, but have no cross to
make this a true reality.
Such people very logicallyapproach the scriptures and base
their beliefs on human wisdom,not enlightenment by the Holy
Spirit and a mind crucified byChrist.
As we have already seen, it ishow we obey that determines
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whether a person has fallen intolegalism.
The test of legalism is not thenumber of scriptures we obey,
but how we obey those scriptures.
Jesus condemned Bible study byhuman effort when he declared
that many people refused to cometo him to have true life.
Christians can diligently studythe scriptures but refuse to
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submit to the cross of Jesus.
So their Bible studies anddebates have no life.
They are legalists who seek toobey Scripture apart from the
power of Jesus Christ, even asthey lay claim to that power.
You diligently study theScriptures because you think
that by them you possess eternallife.
These are the Scriptures thattestify about me, yet you refuse
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to come to me to have life.
John 5, 39-40.
If a person seeks to obey byhuman effort, or in other words,
if they try to use their ownmind to apply scripture to their
life, they fall under legalism.
Coming up is the scripture thatdefines legalism.
It is trying to apply the Bibleto our own life in the best
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manner we can.
Legalism is choosing how weview the scriptures and how we
will apply them.
It uses our own minds tounderstand and obey scripture.
Are you so foolish?
After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain
your goal by human effort?
Galatians 3.3.
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Everyone who goes to churchobeys some set of rules or
principles which must becrucified.
The only kind of obedience thatcounts is one that comes from
death to self by the power ofthe Holy Spirit.
Legalists and logical thinkersdo not want to give up their
lives and follow the Holy Spiritin everything.
So they turn to outlines,biblical principles and their
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own concepts of what Scripturecommands us to obey.
This is usually the kind ofChristianity most people walk in
, even though they may talkabout being spirit-filled.
Legalism is merely a man takingsome idea out of the Bible and
seeking to live it in his ownstrength and understanding.
Salvation by works is nothingless than living by godly
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principles or getting oneselfpumped up from a sermon and
setting out to live thoseprinciples.
It is the Garden of Eden, livedout all over again, where each
man decides what is right andwrong for himself.
This is true salvation by works, and in the end, it cannot save
a person.
Figly faith will never coverour sin.
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True Life, the third and lasttype of obedience is
demonstrated by those who havefound the narrow gate and walk
the narrow road.
They allow the Holy Spirit tocrucify human effort in their
life and do not rebel againstthe demands of grace.
They understand that God'sgrace provides the power to live
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the Christian life.
Indeed, they see no excuse fornot living it.
True humility marks their walk,along with rich obedience.
His divine power has given useverything we need for life and
godliness through our knowledgeof Him who called us by His own
glory and goodness.
2 Peter 1.3.
Think again about what Peterwrote.
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The kind of faith that comesfrom heaven is loaded with the
power to obey.
We have no excuse when we fail.
We must admit our stubbornnessand self-righteousness, for His
divine power has given useverything we need for life and
godliness.
The church today so easilyshouts legalism because it
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overflows with rebels that haveno honest desire to obey God by
grace.
The church claims to know God,but by their actions prove the
opposite and are unfit for doinganything good.
They claim to know God, but bytheir actions they deny Him.
They are detestable,disobedient and unfit for doing
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anything good.
Titus 1.16.
If anyone says they have faithin God but does not have a life
full of obedience, then they donot have a faith that comes from
heaven.
Instead, it is man's faith,man's opinion, man's religion
and man's idea of the Bible.
That kind of faith is manworking to follow Jesus.
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It is salvation by works.
God only gives the Holy Spiritto those who obey Him.
Obey Him and not our idea ofwhat Scripture says or what a
denomination declares thoseunwilling to submit to God's
commands by saving grace, simplydo not have the Holy Spirit.
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We are witnesses of thesethings, and so is the Holy
Spirit whom God has given tothose who obey Him Acts 5.32.
Only those who are willing tolisten to the voice of the Holy
Spirit leading and instructingthem daily will find the new
life.
The Holy Spirit leading andinstructing them daily will find
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the new life.
All others are liars, thievesand robbers trying to earn their
salvation in some other way.
True Saving Faith Can faithwithout deeds save a man?
Can faith without denying self,taking the Lord's Supper,
hearing God's voice, baptism,taking the Lord's Supper,
hearing God's voice, baptism,hating one's own life, despising
the dollar prayer, going tochurch, taking proper roles in
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church, watching what we watch,giving to the poor, watching
what we say, being led by theSpirit, hating our father,
mother, brothers and sisters,giving up all hair length that
glorifies God, becoming aliensand strangers in the world, and
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all the many other scriptures.
Save a man or woman?
God, through James, has alreadygiven us the answer.
What good is it, my brothers,if a man claims to have faith
but has no deeds?
Can such faith save him?
James 2.14.
So, finally, what is salvationby works.
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What is legalism?
Simply man trying to obeyanything apart from the guidance
and empowerment of the HolySpirit.
It is not the fact that a manobeys God's commands in
Scripture.
To only claim that we are savedby faith, as currently
understood by the Church, is todeliberately ignore the Bible
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and rebel against how Goddefines His grace.
Such belief rebels againstGod's actual grace and mercy.
What a heavy judgment willbefall such individuals, for
they have trampled on the bloodof Jesus they claim so strongly
to have faith in.
After all, mercy gives man timeto repent, act, obey and listen
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to the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Let us not sin against heavenitself by misunderstanding mercy
, heaven itself bymisunderstanding mercy.
The Lord is not slow in keepingHis promise, as some understand
slowness.
He is patient with you, notwanting anyone to perish, but
everyone to come to repentance.
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2 Peter 3.9.
Let's recap again what we havecovered, because those who hold
to once saved always saved.
Again what we have covered,because those who hold to once
saved, always saved willinevitably try to confuse the
issue.
We are not saved by our works.
Every true Christian can agreewith Paul that works do not save
us.
We all agree that salvation isa free gift from God.
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Most people have never reallythought about the true meaning
of salvation by works.
They may have some vague ideasabout trying to earn their
salvation, but they rarely turnto scripture for a true
definition.
The most common currentunderstanding usually boils down
to this If you teach that aperson has to do anything in
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order to be saved, then youpreach salvation by works.
We've already seen the blatanthypocrisy of such a statement.
Even teaching that we just haveto ask Jesus into our hearts
still advocates that we dosomething.
We must accept on Jesus' termsan understanding of what it
means to trust him for salvation, not what we wish he meant.
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Trust has come to mean just ashallow verbal acknowledgement
that Jesus died for our sins.
Nowhere in Scripture will wefind such a concept.
Even demons know that To trustor have faith in Jesus means
that we obey him by the power ofthe Holy Spirit, as the cross
is allowed to crucify self.
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To sum up, our choices in theLord Holy Spirit without
obedience equals rebellion.
Obedience without the HolySpirit equals legalism.
Holy Spirit with obedienceequals the new life.
Which choice will you make?
The Consider Podcast examiningtoday's wisdom, folly and
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madness wwwconsiderinfo.