There are multitudes of people who appear godly at a casual glance. They go to a church building every week. They carry their Bibles and even read them at home. They give their money. Nobody can deny that they certainly possess a form of godliness. But upon closer examination, it can be seen that the focus of their message, their ministry and their mindset isn't at all on the cross of Jesus Christ. Their obsession is on themselves. On their behavior. On whether or not it's right or wrong to do this or that. On where Christians can go, what we can say, how we should worship, what we can eat or drink or watch or participate in. The list of preoccupations with anything - with everything - other than the finished work of Jesus Christ is endless within this group.
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Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Your Sins are Forgiven!! (A Fresh look at the cross)
Luke 7:48 ……Your sins are forgiven
What is the good news (gospel) of Jesus Christ? The good news is that “YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN”!!
This statement has become a cliché in the church. To understand this statement, it is necessary to take a fresh look at the cross. What happened at the cross?
Sin separated man from God by the disobedience of one man, Adam. Heb 10:1-4, 11 says that the old covenant, which was a type and shadow of the real thing, had a sacrificial system for the atonement of sins. Because, the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sins, it could not make anyone perfect. If perfection could be achieved by that system, then there would be no need to offer the same sacrifice again and again. So people were constantly conscious of their sins. They could never have a perfect or sinless conscience (Heb 9:9; 10:2). The priest had to offer sacrifices for himself and the congregation continually.
Now contrast that with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, which is the real thing. He was offered ONCE for the sins of many (Heb 9:28). He entered the most holy place with His own blood. How does the ONE sacrifice of Jesus and His blood compare with that of the sacrifices of the old covenant? (Please pause and think about each of the following points)
1. His ONE sacrifice has PUT AWAY SIN FOREVER (Heb 9:26; 10:12)
2. His blood has provided remission or forgiveness of sins (Heb 9:22)
3. His blood has cleansed our conscience (Heb 9:14; 10:22)
4. We HAVE BEEN sanctified ONCE FOR ALL(Heb 10:10)
5. We HAVE BEEN perfected FOREVER (Heb 10:14; 12:23)
6. Because sins have been remitted, there is no need for another sacrifice (Heb 10:18).
7. Because sins have been taken away by His one sacrifice, He is now SEATED and not standing anymore to offer more sacrifices (Heb 10:11-12).
8. He has obtained ETERNAL REDEMPTION (Heb 9:12)
We have received eternal, not momentary, redemption (Heb. 9:12). One sacrifice was made for all sin forever, and we have been perfected forever. Isn’t that awesome news?
So does that mean Christ forgave all our sins (past, present, future sins)? You better believe that Christ has forgiven all your future sins too, because he died for our sins once; 2000 years ago; before we were born or committed any sin. All our sins were future sins when he died. God is not bound by time as we are. When we believe in Jesus and His finished work, we receive the forgiveness for all our sins that He has already provided 2000 years ago. He did this purely by His grace, not because of any of our good deeds or confessions or sin consciousness or introspections. Rather, based on Heb 10:2, we should have no more sin consciousness, because of his perfect sacrifice, which has done a perfect work in the area of sin. We have eternal redemption, which is eternal forgiveness of our sins (Eph 1:7 and Col 1:14). 2 Cor 5:21 says that, He was made sin so that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Beloved, righteousness is a free gift that He has given us - not by our own works (Rom 5:17, 18). Forgiveness of sins and the free gift of righteousness (apart from law/works) is the gospel that Paul preached, that was given to him by direct revelation by Jesus Himself (Acts 13:38; Gal 1:12).
He has taken away not only our sins, but the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2; John 1:29). This is the good news that needs to be shouted from the roof tops. The sin barrier has been removed once for all. God has reconciled the whole world to himself through Christ and is not imputing anyone’s trespasses anymore (2 Cor 5:19). Christ took the punishment for sins of the entire humanity.
Beloved, are you willing to see yourself as God sees you today, forgiven, holy, righteous, sanctified, and perfected because of the PERFECT sacrifice of Jesus? Quit trying to add anything more to his finished work by your religious works. It is an insult to His finished work. He doesn’t even remember your sins anymore (Heb 10:17; Ps 103:12). Jesus said, “It is FINISHED”. Do you believe?
YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN!
What is the good news (gospel) of Jesus Christ? The good news is that “YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN”!!
This statement has become a cliché in the church. To understand this statement, it is necessary to take a fresh look at the cross. What happened at the cross?
Sin separated man from God by the disobedience of one man, Adam. Heb 10:1-4, 11 says that the old covenant, which was a type and shadow of the real thing, had a sacrificial system for the atonement of sins. Because, the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sins, it could not make anyone perfect. If perfection could be achieved by that system, then there would be no need to offer the same sacrifice again and again. So people were constantly conscious of their sins. They could never have a perfect or sinless conscience (Heb 9:9; 10:2). The priest had to offer sacrifices for himself and the congregation continually.
Now contrast that with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, which is the real thing. He was offered ONCE for the sins of many (Heb 9:28). He entered the most holy place with His own blood. How does the ONE sacrifice of Jesus and His blood compare with that of the sacrifices of the old covenant? (Please pause and think about each of the following points)
1. His ONE sacrifice has PUT AWAY SIN FOREVER (Heb 9:26; 10:12)
2. His blood has provided remission or forgiveness of sins (Heb 9:22)
3. His blood has cleansed our conscience (Heb 9:14; 10:22)
4. We HAVE BEEN sanctified ONCE FOR ALL(Heb 10:10)
5. We HAVE BEEN perfected FOREVER (Heb 10:14; 12:23)
6. Because sins have been remitted, there is no need for another sacrifice (Heb 10:18).
7. Because sins have been taken away by His one sacrifice, He is now SEATED and not standing anymore to offer more sacrifices (Heb 10:11-12).
8. He has obtained ETERNAL REDEMPTION (Heb 9:12)
We have received eternal, not momentary, redemption (Heb. 9:12). One sacrifice was made for all sin forever, and we have been perfected forever. Isn’t that awesome news?
So does that mean Christ forgave all our sins (past, present, future sins)? You better believe that Christ has forgiven all your future sins too, because he died for our sins once; 2000 years ago; before we were born or committed any sin. All our sins were future sins when he died. God is not bound by time as we are. When we believe in Jesus and His finished work, we receive the forgiveness for all our sins that He has already provided 2000 years ago. He did this purely by His grace, not because of any of our good deeds or confessions or sin consciousness or introspections. Rather, based on Heb 10:2, we should have no more sin consciousness, because of his perfect sacrifice, which has done a perfect work in the area of sin. We have eternal redemption, which is eternal forgiveness of our sins (Eph 1:7 and Col 1:14). 2 Cor 5:21 says that, He was made sin so that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Beloved, righteousness is a free gift that He has given us - not by our own works (Rom 5:17, 18). Forgiveness of sins and the free gift of righteousness (apart from law/works) is the gospel that Paul preached, that was given to him by direct revelation by Jesus Himself (Acts 13:38; Gal 1:12).
He has taken away not only our sins, but the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2; John 1:29). This is the good news that needs to be shouted from the roof tops. The sin barrier has been removed once for all. God has reconciled the whole world to himself through Christ and is not imputing anyone’s trespasses anymore (2 Cor 5:19). Christ took the punishment for sins of the entire humanity.
Beloved, are you willing to see yourself as God sees you today, forgiven, holy, righteous, sanctified, and perfected because of the PERFECT sacrifice of Jesus? Quit trying to add anything more to his finished work by your religious works. It is an insult to His finished work. He doesn’t even remember your sins anymore (Heb 10:17; Ps 103:12). Jesus said, “It is FINISHED”. Do you believe?
YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN!
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