"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." (16: 25, KJV)
"Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self." (Matthew 16: 25, The Message)
The more that I have been research the self-help movement, and self-help books like Alcoholics Anonymous, one of the most devious and poisonous cults I have ever encountered, I began to see a trend inescapable
All of this self-help really was not helping. Well, aside from giving the book writers more money, the whole self-help dynamic is quite pathetic as well as disappointing.
All of this fascination with ourselves is precisely the problem.
We do not like what we see in ourselves, and yet we think that we can improve what we see.
The problem is that if we are broken and need repairing, what gives any of us the idea that we can improve ourselves in the first place?
"Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come." (Romans 5: 14)
Death reigns in all of mankind because of Adam, but the second Adam arrived, so that in Christ we no longer have to be dead in our trespasses, but we can live and sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2: 1-6)
When we look at what happened to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, in that they believed that they could know right from wrong and live without God directing and supplying them, we find a perfect example of self-help, in that they sought out the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and ate of its fruit, convinced that they coud figure everything out on their own.
Instead, the whole creation and fell, and with it the glory of God was taken from man.
To this day, even in Christian circles, men and women are trying to perfect and improve themselves, when in fact all they can do is amplify the dead failure of the frail flesh and dead spirit.
Self-help does not help ourselves, for ourselves are beyond help. Self-help is not help at all , but when we realize that our selves are beyond help, then we can help ourselves (and ourselves) by receiving a new self, Himself!
"Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4: 17, KJV)
"This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day - our standing in the world is identical with Christ's." (1 John 4: 17, The Message)
Monday, April 7, 2014
Not Self-Help, But a New Self
I hate AA.
I hate any program which makes me look at myself, to tell me that I can make myself better with a little more effort.
That is the essence of self-righteousness, which is right down there with trying to make yourself better, otherwise known as self-help or self-actualization.
The more that man tries to help himself, the more that he find himself helpless.
We are not here for ourselves, for we did not make ourselves.
"3Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture." (Psalm 100: 3)
We came from God, and so anything that we are, that we have, that we do must start with Him, not with us.
From the moment that Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, they chose to trust in their own efforts rather than rest in God and let Him be their life.
The very idea that we can live this life on our own and through our efforts is a complete joke, yet a very fatal and not very funny joke.
"In him was life; and the life was the light of men." (John 1: 4)
If we want life, if we want light, then there is just one source: Jesus!
"Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." (John 8: 12)
and then
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14: 6)
This verses are not open for debate. Either you believe Him or you don't.
By the way, the one work that He calls us to? To believe on Him whom the Father has sent (John 6: 29)
There is no need for self-help, because in Christ we receive a new self, one endowed with His perfect life and strength and standing.
"For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father." (Romans 8: 15)
and then
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (2 Corinthians 5: 17)
New creation, new person, no longer in dead Adam but alive and reigning in life through Christ Jesus (Romans 5:17)
And of course, John wrote this truth so well:
"Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4: 17)
Does Jesus need self-improvement? So are you in this world! Does Jesus need to take His inventory or work a Twelve Step program? Then so are you in this world!
We are called to be in Christ, not in ourselves. There is no need for a counselor for the Wonderful-Counselor, our Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9: 6), ministers on our behalf after the power of an endless life (Hebrews 7: 16)
He is our help, and when we accept that we are helpless in and of ourselves, then He is our Help:
"1For the Chief Musician: a Psalm of the sons of Korah; set to Alamoth. A Song. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46: 10)
And because He is our high-priest forever, we come boldly before Him in any time of need:
"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4: 16)
Forget self-help, and help yourself to all of Jesus!
I hate any program which makes me look at myself, to tell me that I can make myself better with a little more effort.
That is the essence of self-righteousness, which is right down there with trying to make yourself better, otherwise known as self-help or self-actualization.
The more that man tries to help himself, the more that he find himself helpless.
We are not here for ourselves, for we did not make ourselves.
"3Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture." (Psalm 100: 3)
We came from God, and so anything that we are, that we have, that we do must start with Him, not with us.
From the moment that Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, they chose to trust in their own efforts rather than rest in God and let Him be their life.
The very idea that we can live this life on our own and through our efforts is a complete joke, yet a very fatal and not very funny joke.
"In him was life; and the life was the light of men." (John 1: 4)
If we want life, if we want light, then there is just one source: Jesus!
"Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." (John 8: 12)
and then
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14: 6)
This verses are not open for debate. Either you believe Him or you don't.
By the way, the one work that He calls us to? To believe on Him whom the Father has sent (John 6: 29)
There is no need for self-help, because in Christ we receive a new self, one endowed with His perfect life and strength and standing.
"For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father." (Romans 8: 15)
and then
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (2 Corinthians 5: 17)
New creation, new person, no longer in dead Adam but alive and reigning in life through Christ Jesus (Romans 5:17)
And of course, John wrote this truth so well:
"Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." (1 John 4: 17)
Does Jesus need self-improvement? So are you in this world! Does Jesus need to take His inventory or work a Twelve Step program? Then so are you in this world!
We are called to be in Christ, not in ourselves. There is no need for a counselor for the Wonderful-Counselor, our Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9: 6), ministers on our behalf after the power of an endless life (Hebrews 7: 16)
He is our help, and when we accept that we are helpless in and of ourselves, then He is our Help:
"1For the Chief Musician: a Psalm of the sons of Korah; set to Alamoth. A Song. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." (Psalm 46: 10)
And because He is our high-priest forever, we come boldly before Him in any time of need:
"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4: 16)
Forget self-help, and help yourself to all of Jesus!
Sunday, April 6, 2014
No More Guilty Conscience in Christ
When we believe and receive all that Jesus Christ has done for us at the Cross, there must be and of guilt, shame, and upset in our lives.
We are to have a good conscience toward Christ, not an evil conscience.
Unfortunately, I was brought up to believe that a good conscience or a bad conscience meant that I had done something wrong, or that I had been doing things right.
The passage often presented to me was:
"The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:" (1 Peter 3: 21)
Despite the traditional understanding of this passage, the very language itself bears witness that a good conscience has nothing to do with what we do, but with what Jesus has done. Our good conscience is not the "putting way of the flesh", which includes taking a ritual bath in water as well as not doing bad things.
We need only review the wonders of all that Jesus did for us at the Cross to realize that His death and resurrection at the Cross accomplished so much more than just dying for us:
"1There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3For 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: 4That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Romans 8: 1-4)
There is no condemnation in Christ -- none. And we are in Christ. We are not outside of Him, or next to Him. We are in Christ, and He lives in us. This is a full new identification, because we are a new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5: 17).
We still walk around in these bodies, in which sinful emotions are present, but they are defanged, condemned, and no longer a part of us.
The AA cult forces its members to keep looking at the failings in our thoughts and minds, that we are alone with our sins, that we have to work hard to maintain a spiritual program.
Is it any surprise that AA members are cursed with an evil conscience and fall into deep depression, or even death?
The guilty conscience is something more than what we think or do, but has everything to do with who we are in Adam.
And because of religious cults like AA, men and women attract a conscience seared:
"1Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;" (1 Timohty 4:1-2)
Now this business of conscience seared has confused many, who have initially interpreted this verse to mean that men and women will no longer know right from wrong. Once again, putting away the traditions of men and letting the Bible speak for itself, we find that the passage speaks of an intensified religiosity. The word "seared" carries a connotation of never leaving someone, a stain that is not removed. A stain, a smear, a mark of damage is never a good thing, much like the stigma used in ancient Greek times to signal that someone was guilty of a crime.
To have a seared conscience is to have a feeling that you are always guilty, and that you must keep doing something to maintain some sense of peace and right standing, through your own efforts.
In other words, self-righteousness. Anything that we do cannot grant to us the final peace of a perfect conscience:
"1For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. 3But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. 4For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." (Hebrews 10: 1-4)
We need a complete and holy blood to take away our sins -- and keep taking our sins away:
"For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. 15Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,
We are to have a good conscience toward Christ, not an evil conscience.
Unfortunately, I was brought up to believe that a good conscience or a bad conscience meant that I had done something wrong, or that I had been doing things right.
The passage often presented to me was:
"The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:" (1 Peter 3: 21)
Despite the traditional understanding of this passage, the very language itself bears witness that a good conscience has nothing to do with what we do, but with what Jesus has done. Our good conscience is not the "putting way of the flesh", which includes taking a ritual bath in water as well as not doing bad things.
We need only review the wonders of all that Jesus did for us at the Cross to realize that His death and resurrection at the Cross accomplished so much more than just dying for us:
"1There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3For 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: 4That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Romans 8: 1-4)
There is no condemnation in Christ -- none. And we are in Christ. We are not outside of Him, or next to Him. We are in Christ, and He lives in us. This is a full new identification, because we are a new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5: 17).
We still walk around in these bodies, in which sinful emotions are present, but they are defanged, condemned, and no longer a part of us.
The AA cult forces its members to keep looking at the failings in our thoughts and minds, that we are alone with our sins, that we have to work hard to maintain a spiritual program.
Is it any surprise that AA members are cursed with an evil conscience and fall into deep depression, or even death?
The guilty conscience is something more than what we think or do, but has everything to do with who we are in Adam.
And because of religious cults like AA, men and women attract a conscience seared:
"1Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;" (1 Timohty 4:1-2)
Now this business of conscience seared has confused many, who have initially interpreted this verse to mean that men and women will no longer know right from wrong. Once again, putting away the traditions of men and letting the Bible speak for itself, we find that the passage speaks of an intensified religiosity. The word "seared" carries a connotation of never leaving someone, a stain that is not removed. A stain, a smear, a mark of damage is never a good thing, much like the stigma used in ancient Greek times to signal that someone was guilty of a crime.
To have a seared conscience is to have a feeling that you are always guilty, and that you must keep doing something to maintain some sense of peace and right standing, through your own efforts.
In other words, self-righteousness. Anything that we do cannot grant to us the final peace of a perfect conscience:
"1For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. 3But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. 4For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." (Hebrews 10: 1-4)
We need a complete and holy blood to take away our sins -- and keep taking our sins away:
"For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. 15Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,
16This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
17And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
18Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin." (Hebrews 10: 14-18)
That last verse bears review: "There is no more offering for sin."
All of our confession, contrition, communion, calumniation, condemnation cannot make up for or culminate what Jesus completed for us at the Cross.
That includes taking our inventory and working Twelve Steps.
In fact, if we insist on working Twelve Steps, or doing something else to grant us peace, we are not walking in faith, we are not resting in His Finished Work, and we have entered back into unbelief.
We have all things by grace through faith in what Jesus has done. There is no more guilty conscience, for because of the blood of Jesus, we are perfected forever, as the blood of Jesus continues to cleanse us from all sin (1 John 1: 7)
Screw guilt, as members of the AA cult often say, but know that your guilt, all of it, was screwed at the Cross!
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Can't Go Back to the Old Covenant (or AA)
If I do not believe that all my sins are forgiven, then there is pain and suffering in my life, as will emerge in the lives of all Christians, all children of God.
The notion that I can go back to living under stress and duress has been put to rest.
The hardships which I have faced, all go back to Alcoholics Anonymous, and the outrageous notions that I was on my own in this life.
No one should ever feel that way. Ever.
Jesus did not die on the Cross for men and women to struggle with a lonely, orphan spirit.
Jesus did not die on the Cross for us to struggle and fend for ourselves.
Yet if you believe that we are made righteous daily by what we do, instead of all that Jesus has done, that sense of distance will be inescapable.
I felt that painful tug in my life for so long, it was just unbearable.
There was no future for me, it seemed, and I felt that God was so distant.
One day He seemed so near, the next minute He seemed so far away.
As long as we have some kind of works mentality, we have no choice but to keep searching for something more to do.
We have no choice but to continue looking at our thoughts and feelings, convinced that how we feel or what we think makes or breaks God's presence or power in our lives.
I was taught about God's righteousness, that I was made the righteousness of God in Christ.
No one had taught me that I had to get rid of the Old Covenant and step and rest in the New Covenant.
As long as I was convinced that life was about working some kind of program, then there was no quality of life beyond keeping myself just a little bit happier than yesterday.
A life of progress not perfection is just devastating and putrid, because no good thing dwells in our flesh, and we can do nothing of ourselves.
Life was so empty on my own, because life is not about us. Life is a Person, and not Bill W, a baseless and base charlatan who concocted a poppy-cock self-improvement program which wrecks people even further.
I have tasted the New Covenant, and I have jumped in with both feet. I simply cannot go back to the way things used to be, or there is nothing but pain and suffering waiting for me.
The notion that I can go back to living under stress and duress has been put to rest.
The hardships which I have faced, all go back to Alcoholics Anonymous, and the outrageous notions that I was on my own in this life.
No one should ever feel that way. Ever.
Jesus did not die on the Cross for men and women to struggle with a lonely, orphan spirit.
Jesus did not die on the Cross for us to struggle and fend for ourselves.
Yet if you believe that we are made righteous daily by what we do, instead of all that Jesus has done, that sense of distance will be inescapable.
I felt that painful tug in my life for so long, it was just unbearable.
There was no future for me, it seemed, and I felt that God was so distant.
One day He seemed so near, the next minute He seemed so far away.
As long as we have some kind of works mentality, we have no choice but to keep searching for something more to do.
We have no choice but to continue looking at our thoughts and feelings, convinced that how we feel or what we think makes or breaks God's presence or power in our lives.
I was taught about God's righteousness, that I was made the righteousness of God in Christ.
No one had taught me that I had to get rid of the Old Covenant and step and rest in the New Covenant.
As long as I was convinced that life was about working some kind of program, then there was no quality of life beyond keeping myself just a little bit happier than yesterday.
A life of progress not perfection is just devastating and putrid, because no good thing dwells in our flesh, and we can do nothing of ourselves.
Life was so empty on my own, because life is not about us. Life is a Person, and not Bill W, a baseless and base charlatan who concocted a poppy-cock self-improvement program which wrecks people even further.
I have tasted the New Covenant, and I have jumped in with both feet. I simply cannot go back to the way things used to be, or there is nothing but pain and suffering waiting for me.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Update About the Truth
The truth of the Gospel is that in Christ, we are justified from all sins for all time forever.
There is no place for sin, shame, guilt, reproach, or any other terrible thing.
Not the terror of God, but His Love, accomplished for us at the Cross, takes away all our fears and torments, and brings us into perfects standing before our Daddy God.
The AA cult does the exact opposite, telling people that they have to get right with God first, so that He can work in our lives.
The never-ending self-treadmill brings people to a terrible end, in that they can do nothing but rehearse and repeat their sins and failures.
I hate AA.
I love Jesus, because today I know how much He loves me.
I never realized how important it is to know His love for me.
For so long, I was so caught up in my feelings, that I had to feel good or bad, and that was qualified as God's love for me.
I was so caught up in feelings, and how else can one be, if one is raised in a cult which teaches you that you are sick, are insane, and must run your life by some "Higher power" -- in truth, the sick program of Alcoholics Anonymous and the dictates of some dictator-sponsor who feels marginally better than you because he has more time in the program.
I lived with a sense of shame on the inside all the time, as if every time I felt bad, it meant that I had to do something about it.
How easy it was for people to offend me. How fearful I was stepping into this world every day. I put my sense of peace and respect into what other people thought of me. That is wrong. Who we are has nothing to do with who we are, but everything to do with who He is.
The sense of demand, shame, and frustration is now gone. This is a life which He lives in me, and which I am now receiving in greater measure, recognizing that God the Father fulfilled his righteousness and His love at the Cross through His Son, for me.
That is the truth which sets me free.
There is no place for sin, shame, guilt, reproach, or any other terrible thing.
Not the terror of God, but His Love, accomplished for us at the Cross, takes away all our fears and torments, and brings us into perfects standing before our Daddy God.
The AA cult does the exact opposite, telling people that they have to get right with God first, so that He can work in our lives.
The never-ending self-treadmill brings people to a terrible end, in that they can do nothing but rehearse and repeat their sins and failures.
I hate AA.
I love Jesus, because today I know how much He loves me.
I never realized how important it is to know His love for me.
For so long, I was so caught up in my feelings, that I had to feel good or bad, and that was qualified as God's love for me.
I was so caught up in feelings, and how else can one be, if one is raised in a cult which teaches you that you are sick, are insane, and must run your life by some "Higher power" -- in truth, the sick program of Alcoholics Anonymous and the dictates of some dictator-sponsor who feels marginally better than you because he has more time in the program.
I lived with a sense of shame on the inside all the time, as if every time I felt bad, it meant that I had to do something about it.
How easy it was for people to offend me. How fearful I was stepping into this world every day. I put my sense of peace and respect into what other people thought of me. That is wrong. Who we are has nothing to do with who we are, but everything to do with who He is.
The sense of demand, shame, and frustration is now gone. This is a life which He lives in me, and which I am now receiving in greater measure, recognizing that God the Father fulfilled his righteousness and His love at the Cross through His Son, for me.
That is the truth which sets me free.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Must Get Rid of All Ordinances Against Us
I was so bitter.
People could make me so mad, and the hurtful things which had been done to me, sometimes I just could not forgive.
I could not let go for some reason.
The cycle of pain, anger, frustration then resolutions to try harder, just drove me to such terrible states of despair, that I had no idea what to do.
Since learning fully about the Gospel of Grace, for there is no other Gospel, I have learned so much about God's goodness, and how He has met every need for me in Christ and Him Crucified.
It took me a long time to accept this truth, that I did not have a feeling problem, as much as a knowledge problem, and this knowledge problem was attached to the fact that I did not really understand what Jesus did for me at the Cross.
I lived in a household where the Ten Commandments were posted on the wall, or where I was taught to live my life in accordance with the Twelve Steps. Ten and Twelve cannot replace what the One on did for me at the Cross.
He took all my sins -- all of them -- then gave me His life and standing -- all of it.
For this reason, because of how much God loves me through His Son Jesus, Paul prayed:
"16Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; 17That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: 18The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power," (Ephesians 1: 16-19)
We need to know and believe the great inheritance which we have in Christ Jesus.
We cannot know what we have in Christ if we do not know that we are in Christ, and that Christ has given us all things through His death on the Cross.
The part that matters a great deal, however, rests specifically on the truth that the Ordinance of the law have been fulfilled, and thus are rendered inoperative:
"13And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Colossians 2:1 3-15)
There is so much in these verses, which we cannot ignore, yet we end up being ignorant of, if we insist on going with the counsel of the ungodly so prevalent in man-made self-help movements.
We are dead in our sins. Our flesh speaks of uncircumcision, in that no good thing dwells in our flesh, in our self-efforts to be righteous before God.
We are dead, and Jesus gives us life. We have sin, and Jesus died on the Cross for our sin, granting us His righteousness, a perfect standing before God the Father.
All our sins have been forgiven, paid for in the Body of Christ Jesus, and as a result, Jesus' death puts to silence any condemnation, because through His death on the Cross, He fulfilled the law, both moral and ceremonial, for the law is a composite whole, and the ministry of condemnation is graven on stones, the Ten Commandments.
Plus the fact that all of mankind has a knowledge of good and evil, of right and wrong, which he cannot keep in his own strength (Romans 2: 15)
We need to understand that we are freed from the curse of the law (Galatians 3: 13) and that we are no longer under any tutor (Galatians 3: 23-25)
Yet to this day, church people, Christians, children of the living God insist on bringing themselves under the Ten Commandments or the Twelve Steps in barren attempts to create holiness through what they do.
Pau responds:
"20Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, 21(Touch not; taste not; handle not; 22Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? 23Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh." (Colossians 2: 20-23)
The writs and codes of man cannot fix the evil in men's hearts, the sin in our flesh which we cannot undo through our own efforts, much like a dirty man trying to clean himself with a cloth soiled as soon as he touches it.
In fact, Isaiah prophesies about man's righteousness:
"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." (Isaiah 64: 6)
Not us righteousness, but a plurality of righteous acts are like filthy rags to God. Wow! And not only that, but we fade away as leaves.
This leaf reference reminds us of the first attempt by man to make himself righteous, with fig leaves, which not only did not work, but only magnified their shame, as they sought to hide away from God as soon as they heard His voice walking in the garden.
In Jesus Christ, we are not just freed from any sense of shame about our sins, or the sin in our flesh, but there are no more demands against us, as the law, as administered to the Jewish People before Christ Jesus, has been finished, fulfilled, and now forever put away:
"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." (Hebrews 8: 13)
Not one bit of our effort or law-keeping can make us righteousness, and we certainly cannot produce holiness on our own. We are called to live by faith, not by works, and by His faith, not our own, for that would be another work of our flesh.
Let us get rid of all ordinances, and by doing so, we free ourselves from every bondage in our lives.
Hallelujah!
People could make me so mad, and the hurtful things which had been done to me, sometimes I just could not forgive.
I could not let go for some reason.
The cycle of pain, anger, frustration then resolutions to try harder, just drove me to such terrible states of despair, that I had no idea what to do.
Since learning fully about the Gospel of Grace, for there is no other Gospel, I have learned so much about God's goodness, and how He has met every need for me in Christ and Him Crucified.
It took me a long time to accept this truth, that I did not have a feeling problem, as much as a knowledge problem, and this knowledge problem was attached to the fact that I did not really understand what Jesus did for me at the Cross.
I lived in a household where the Ten Commandments were posted on the wall, or where I was taught to live my life in accordance with the Twelve Steps. Ten and Twelve cannot replace what the One on did for me at the Cross.
He took all my sins -- all of them -- then gave me His life and standing -- all of it.
For this reason, because of how much God loves me through His Son Jesus, Paul prayed:
"16Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; 17That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: 18The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power," (Ephesians 1: 16-19)
We need to know and believe the great inheritance which we have in Christ Jesus.
We cannot know what we have in Christ if we do not know that we are in Christ, and that Christ has given us all things through His death on the Cross.
The part that matters a great deal, however, rests specifically on the truth that the Ordinance of the law have been fulfilled, and thus are rendered inoperative:
"13And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Colossians 2:1 3-15)
There is so much in these verses, which we cannot ignore, yet we end up being ignorant of, if we insist on going with the counsel of the ungodly so prevalent in man-made self-help movements.
We are dead in our sins. Our flesh speaks of uncircumcision, in that no good thing dwells in our flesh, in our self-efforts to be righteous before God.
We are dead, and Jesus gives us life. We have sin, and Jesus died on the Cross for our sin, granting us His righteousness, a perfect standing before God the Father.
All our sins have been forgiven, paid for in the Body of Christ Jesus, and as a result, Jesus' death puts to silence any condemnation, because through His death on the Cross, He fulfilled the law, both moral and ceremonial, for the law is a composite whole, and the ministry of condemnation is graven on stones, the Ten Commandments.
Plus the fact that all of mankind has a knowledge of good and evil, of right and wrong, which he cannot keep in his own strength (Romans 2: 15)
We need to understand that we are freed from the curse of the law (Galatians 3: 13) and that we are no longer under any tutor (Galatians 3: 23-25)
Yet to this day, church people, Christians, children of the living God insist on bringing themselves under the Ten Commandments or the Twelve Steps in barren attempts to create holiness through what they do.
Pau responds:
"20Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, 21(Touch not; taste not; handle not; 22Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? 23Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh." (Colossians 2: 20-23)
The writs and codes of man cannot fix the evil in men's hearts, the sin in our flesh which we cannot undo through our own efforts, much like a dirty man trying to clean himself with a cloth soiled as soon as he touches it.
In fact, Isaiah prophesies about man's righteousness:
"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." (Isaiah 64: 6)
Not us righteousness, but a plurality of righteous acts are like filthy rags to God. Wow! And not only that, but we fade away as leaves.
This leaf reference reminds us of the first attempt by man to make himself righteous, with fig leaves, which not only did not work, but only magnified their shame, as they sought to hide away from God as soon as they heard His voice walking in the garden.
In Jesus Christ, we are not just freed from any sense of shame about our sins, or the sin in our flesh, but there are no more demands against us, as the law, as administered to the Jewish People before Christ Jesus, has been finished, fulfilled, and now forever put away:
"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." (Hebrews 8: 13)
Not one bit of our effort or law-keeping can make us righteousness, and we certainly cannot produce holiness on our own. We are called to live by faith, not by works, and by His faith, not our own, for that would be another work of our flesh.
Let us get rid of all ordinances, and by doing so, we free ourselves from every bondage in our lives.
Hallelujah!
Not the Memory, but the Shame/Condemnation
Forgive and forget.
This tired cliché is often trotted out for people who have a hard time letting go of pain, suffering, bitterness, etc. in their lives.
The cult of Twelve Steps tells people that they have to look at the people who have harmed them as though they were just sick, and because they were sick, we should not be angry at them, for that's not the way to treat people.
Such an argument is false as well as offensive, immoral, and ultimately unsatisfying.
Something in our bodies, in our minds will not relent in the face of evil, in the presence of injustice.
There was so many people whom I met and whom I knew, talked with in AA meetings, and the resentment, bitterness, and outrage in their lives remained at an all time high.
Let's start telling the truth. The AA program, whether we are talking about anger, fear selfishness, fright, etc. does not work.
I have submitted before, and I stand by this statement even now: Twelve Step programs actually create resentment, they induce bitterness, they make us more angry, as they teach us to look at our feelings and thoughts.
What's worse, though, is the wicked argument which follows:
Though we did not like their symptoms and the way these disturbed us, they, like ourselves, were sick too. We asked God to help us show them the same tolerance, pity, and patience that we would cheerfully grant a sick friend. When a person offended we said to ourselves, "This is a sick man. How can I be helpful to him? God save me from being angry. Thy will be done."
This tired cliché is often trotted out for people who have a hard time letting go of pain, suffering, bitterness, etc. in their lives.
The cult of Twelve Steps tells people that they have to look at the people who have harmed them as though they were just sick, and because they were sick, we should not be angry at them, for that's not the way to treat people.
Such an argument is false as well as offensive, immoral, and ultimately unsatisfying.
Something in our bodies, in our minds will not relent in the face of evil, in the presence of injustice.
There was so many people whom I met and whom I knew, talked with in AA meetings, and the resentment, bitterness, and outrage in their lives remained at an all time high.
Let's start telling the truth. The AA program, whether we are talking about anger, fear selfishness, fright, etc. does not work.
I have submitted before, and I stand by this statement even now: Twelve Step programs actually create resentment, they induce bitterness, they make us more angry, as they teach us to look at our feelings and thoughts.
What's worse, though, is the wicked argument which follows:
Though we did not like their symptoms and the way these disturbed us, they, like ourselves, were sick too. We asked God to help us show them the same tolerance, pity, and patience that we would cheerfully grant a sick friend. When a person offended we said to ourselves, "This is a sick man. How can I be helpful to him? God save me from being angry. Thy will be done."
We avoid retaliation or argument. We wouldn't treat sick people that way. If we do, we destroy our chance of being helpful. We cannot be helpful to all people, but at least God will show us how to take a kindly and tolerant view of each and every one.
Referring to our list again. Putting out of our minds the wrongs others had done, we resolutely looked for our own mistakes. Where had we been selfish, dishonest, self-seeking and frightened? Though a situation had not been entirely our fault, we tried to disregard the other person involved entirely. Where were we to blame? The inventory was ours, not the other man's. When we saw our faults we listed them. We placed them before us in black and white. We admitted our wrongs honestly and were willing to set these matters straight. (AA, pg 67)
I cannot think of a more offensive regimen for helping anyone overcome anything in this life.
The more that we look at ourselves, and try to make amends for our own faults, failings, sins, etc. the more that we actually magnify our lack of forgiveness for other people.
The true program for forgiveness is not in our trying to forgive others, but rather recognizing how forgiven we are:
"31Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." (Ephesians 4: 31-32)
The word "forgive" is not rich enough in the King James translation, as the word is actually "charitoo", which means on its surface "be gracious" or "give grace to"
We cannot give grace to others until we know and believe in His love for us, in that He has been completely gracious to us and other sins.
We also need to realize that as far as God is concerned with us, all our sins have been put away paid for, sent away, and thus we are no longer bound by our efforts, whether in what we think or do, or not do, in order to be pleasing to God in some way.
In fact, with the same verb used, Paul expresses that we have been graced, favored, and accepted in the Beloved, Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1: 6)
So, we are not in the business of trying to make ourselves pay for our sins, and thus we are more than willing to let the garbage which other people have perpetrated against us go away, as well.
We have been blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ, and we can trust that He will freely give us all things, because He gave Himself so freely for us at the Cross.
We do not have to put away our bad memories, because the sting, the bitterness, the hurt of shame and reproach has been put away forever in all that Christ Jesus has done for us at the Cross.
Thus, we can rest, rejoice, and receive all kinds of blessings from our Daddy God, and say as did Joseph the promoted federal head of all Egypt:
"50And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him. 51And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father's house. 52And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction." (Genesis 41: 50-52)
It's not our job to forget, and we do not have to strive to forgive, because when we understand how fully forgiven we are in Christ, then we cannot help but extend this same grace to other people, too!
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